A Short History of the World by Christopher Lascelles Page A
Authors: Christopher Lascelles
Tags: History, Napoléon, World history, Big History, Short World History, Global History, Short History, Best History Book
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uprising. It was the efforts of the Umayyads to put down this uprising that led to their eventual downfall. Led by Abu l’Abbas al-Saffah, the great-great-grandson of the Prophet’s uncle, the dissenters rebelled, proclaimed Abu l’Abbas caliph and, in AD 750, having invited all the members of the Umayyad clan to a feast, slaughtered all of them except one, Abd ar-Rahman, the grandson of a former caliph. Abd ar-Rahman fled via Africa to Spain, where he defeated the governor of Al-Andalus, a supporter of l’Abbas, and established an independent emirate based out of Cordoba.
Early African Empires
From the 7th century, the Muslims also explored much of Africa, many centuries before the Europeans parcelled the continent up between them. Our knowledge of this continent’s history is hampered by an absence of written records. The lack of a major transport infrastructure, such as that created by the Romans and the Chinese, makes its history very disparate, and this is not helped by the lack of archaeological evidence. We do know, however, that the growth of Carthage stimulated trade across the desert, and that this trade grew further under the Romans, who named the continent Africa after a tribe living near Carthage called the Afri.
It was Muslims who introduced the camel in great quantities, which helped develop trade further and indirectly aided the growth of regional powers such as the great West African empires of Ghana, 28 Mali and Songhai, between the 7th and the 16th centuries. Much of what we know about African states in the 14th century comes from the writing of Abu Abdalla Ibn Battuta, a famous 14th century explorer, who spent almost 30 years travelling through the Islamic world, including northern Africa, India, Central Asia, China and the Middle East.
The Chinese Century (AD 650 – 750)
While Europe was mired in darkness, China was very much at the forefront of civilisation on earth. After the collapse of the Han Dynasty in AD 220, much of China was united again only in 581 under the Sui Dynasty. While, this dynasty was short-lived, it lay the foundations for one of the longest enduring empires in Chinese history and possibly the greatest empire of the medieval world – the Tang Dynasty (618-907).
With enlightened and leadership and efficiently run and powerful armies that subdued its neighbours in the north and northwest, China thrived. Central Asian, Middle Eastern, and Persian cultures and religions were absorbed by the court and tourists and commerce flooded into the capital, Chang’an (modern day Xi’an), which rapidly became the largest city in the world. Such were the advancements in art, literature and poetry that early 8th century China is traditionally regarded as the Golden Age of Chinese history. It was also during this time that tea became established as the national drink of China.
The Tang Dynasty suffered a number of natural disasters and, like the Sui dynasty that preceded it, eventually became less tolerant and more divided. It subsided into anarchy and eventually collapsed completely.
The Islamic Golden Age (8th–11th Centuries)
In the Middle East, the new Islamic dynasty came to be known as the Abbasid Caliphate and is synonymous with the golden age of Islam. The Abbasids moved their capital from Damascus to Baghdad and through trade with the East and through its agricultural wealth, the city soon became one of the richest cities in the world. It remained the political and cultural capital of the Islamic world from that time until the Mongol invasion in 1258.
Great wealth encouraged the Abbasids to support learning and the arts; under a succession of great caliphs in the 8th and 9th centuries – predominantly under the caliphs al-Mansur, al-Rashid, and al-Mamoun – significant efforts were directed towards gathering knowledge from around the world. This created the conditions for the great flowering of Muslim culture and intellectual achievement in the
Early African Empires
From the 7th century, the Muslims also explored much of Africa, many centuries before the Europeans parcelled the continent up between them. Our knowledge of this continent’s history is hampered by an absence of written records. The lack of a major transport infrastructure, such as that created by the Romans and the Chinese, makes its history very disparate, and this is not helped by the lack of archaeological evidence. We do know, however, that the growth of Carthage stimulated trade across the desert, and that this trade grew further under the Romans, who named the continent Africa after a tribe living near Carthage called the Afri.
It was Muslims who introduced the camel in great quantities, which helped develop trade further and indirectly aided the growth of regional powers such as the great West African empires of Ghana, 28 Mali and Songhai, between the 7th and the 16th centuries. Much of what we know about African states in the 14th century comes from the writing of Abu Abdalla Ibn Battuta, a famous 14th century explorer, who spent almost 30 years travelling through the Islamic world, including northern Africa, India, Central Asia, China and the Middle East.
The Chinese Century (AD 650 – 750)
While Europe was mired in darkness, China was very much at the forefront of civilisation on earth. After the collapse of the Han Dynasty in AD 220, much of China was united again only in 581 under the Sui Dynasty. While, this dynasty was short-lived, it lay the foundations for one of the longest enduring empires in Chinese history and possibly the greatest empire of the medieval world – the Tang Dynasty (618-907).
With enlightened and leadership and efficiently run and powerful armies that subdued its neighbours in the north and northwest, China thrived. Central Asian, Middle Eastern, and Persian cultures and religions were absorbed by the court and tourists and commerce flooded into the capital, Chang’an (modern day Xi’an), which rapidly became the largest city in the world. Such were the advancements in art, literature and poetry that early 8th century China is traditionally regarded as the Golden Age of Chinese history. It was also during this time that tea became established as the national drink of China.
The Tang Dynasty suffered a number of natural disasters and, like the Sui dynasty that preceded it, eventually became less tolerant and more divided. It subsided into anarchy and eventually collapsed completely.
The Islamic Golden Age (8th–11th Centuries)
In the Middle East, the new Islamic dynasty came to be known as the Abbasid Caliphate and is synonymous with the golden age of Islam. The Abbasids moved their capital from Damascus to Baghdad and through trade with the East and through its agricultural wealth, the city soon became one of the richest cities in the world. It remained the political and cultural capital of the Islamic world from that time until the Mongol invasion in 1258.
Great wealth encouraged the Abbasids to support learning and the arts; under a succession of great caliphs in the 8th and 9th centuries – predominantly under the caliphs al-Mansur, al-Rashid, and al-Mamoun – significant efforts were directed towards gathering knowledge from around the world. This created the conditions for the great flowering of Muslim culture and intellectual achievement in the
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